Downers Grove South's 2013 spring sports highlight reel

Boys volleyball state championship, girls softball playoff run top list of memorable moments

By SUBURBAN LIFE MEDIA

June 26, 2013

Photo provided

Caption

The boys volleyball team raises the state championship trophy.

The spring sports season saw a slew of memorable moments from Downers Grove South athletes. Here are some of the biggest highlights for the Mustangs.

BASEBALL

13: Number of times the Mustangs scored eight runs or more in a game. They scored in double-digits eight times.

Highlight: Winning 20 games in high school baseball ensures a winning season. Winning 30 places a team in elite company. The Mustangs reached elite status this season, topping Waubonsie Valley, 4-1, in the regional championship game for win No. 30. The Mustangs were anchored by the strong pitching of Brian Glowicki, Zach Burdi, Danny Mayer, Nick Alfini and Zach Taylor.

6-0: The Mustangs' record in West Suburban Gold play this spring. Four of those wins came in two games.

Highlight: The Mustangs won a conference title, but the big prize came June 1 when they topped Lincoln-Way North 25-18, 25-20 for the state title. Nick Timreck (11 kills), Mike Schmitt (10 kills), David Pawlicki (29 assists) and David DeMarco (14 digs) led the title match effort, but it was a team effort all season as five players (Timreck, Schmitt, Will Tischler, John Hanek and Austin Adank) had more than 100 kills and five (DeMarco, Pawlicki, Hanek, Tyler Zowaski and Steve Kryk) tallied more than 100 digs. South finished the year 31-10.

7: Length of the the Mustangs' longest winning streak this season, from April 16 to May 1.

Highlight: Coming out of the gate, the Mustangs limped to a 4-5 start. But with a young team that started just two seniors most of the time, South started 11-0 in the West Suburban Gold and won the conference title, and performed even better in the postseason. The Mustangs, seeded No. 9 in the sectional, took out higher seeds Naperville North, Naperville Central and Downers Grove North as they won regional and sectional titles.

32-2: Margin by which the Mustangs outscored their West Suburban Gold conference foes. They won four of six games via shutout.

Highlight: With several new players stepping into larger roles and a new coaching staff taking over (led by head coach Abby Anderson), the Mustangs would have been forgiven for a so-so season. But there was nothing average about the season as South won a conference title, finished with a winning record (13-9-1) and played for a regional title. Nicole Janowiak (12), Kelly Stapleton (11) and Autumn Rasmussen (10) finished double digits in goal scoring, and Jamie Furio tallied four shutouts in net.

BOYS TENNIS

3: Number of matches the Mustangs lost in West Suburban Gold conference play. They won 39 matches and all six duals plus the conference tournament.

Highlight: South breezed through the West Suburban Gold conference and won a sectional title with a perfect score of 36 and scored 17 points at the state tournament, where they finished seventh in the team picture. Singles players Kyle Leto and John Artus and the doubles team of Cody Freischlag and Christian San Andres all had winning 3-2 records at state.